Lady Brisco, Mary Brisco, nee Dyfe Country Life Magazine Portrait January 14 1928

Lady Brisco, Mary Brisco, nee Dyfe Country Life Magazine Portrait, Frontispiece, January 14 1928. LXIII No. 1617

The featured frontispiece this week is a portrait of Lady Brisco, from a painting by Thomas Gainsborough, exhibited at the Royal Academy.

• The Portrait: Painted in 1776 by Thomas Gainsborough, R.A., a founding member of the Royal Academy, this is a striking full-length society portrait.
• Artistic Style: Gainsborough subtly elongated the figure to account for foreshortening, as the work was intended to be displayed high on the walls of the crowded Summer Exhibitions.
• The Sitter: Lady Brisco (Mary Brisco, née Dyfe), the daughter of a wealthy plantation owner with estates in the Caribbean, notably on St. Christopher Island (now St. Kitts).
• Marriage: She married Sir John Brisco, 1st Baronet of Crofton Hall, on July 8, 1776.
• Family: The couple had several children, including Sir Wastel Brisco, 2nd Baronet, along with daughters Camilla, Caroline, Augusta, and Emma, and sons Fleming John, Frederick, and possibly Henry.
• Collection: The painting forms part of the Iveagh Bequest and is permanently housed at Kenwood House in London.
• Exhibition: At the time of this 1928 publication, the portrait was on display at the Royal Academy at Burlington House.

This is an authentic original page from Country Life magazine, part of the iconic series often affectionately referred to as the “Girls in Pearls” portraits — elegant society images that captured a distinctive era of British publishing and portraiture.

Size: Approximately 13.75 x 9 inches (35 x 23 cm)

Condition: Very good for its age. As with all vintage magazine pages, light signs of handling or minor age-related blemishes may be present. Please review the large photo carefully for full condition details.

This original Country Life Magazine frontispiece portrait forms part of The Old Map Shop’s curated archive of society portraits published between 1897 and 2026.